Yonatan Tesfaye, a researcher from the Textile and Apparel Industry Research and Development Center, led the session and highlighted the importance of implementing a comprehensive system to monitor and improve manufacturing capacity utilization across the country.
He noted that a national policy and uniform guidelines on capacity utilization have already been formulated. According to Yonatan, understanding and applying these guidelines effectively is essential for achieving sustainable production, meeting international standards, and ensuring the competitiveness of Ethiopian products in the global market.
“Capacity utilization is more than just a measure of how much is being produced,” he explained. “It reflects the efficiency of operations, the size and capabilities of businesses, and broader economic indicators such as inflation and productivity.”
He further emphasized that tracking and analyzing capacity utilization helps identify operational gaps, enabling policymakers and industry leaders to address root problems and improve performance. This, he said, is vital not only for individual organizations but also for assessing the overall health of the national economy.
Yonatan called on all sectors to prioritize capacity utilization as a key tool for economic planning and decision-making, stressing that it plays a critical role in Ethiopia’s industrialization journey.